


Sin Gasolina

by m4jor3tt3



Category: Book of Life (2014), Firefly
Genre: Crossover, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-18
Updated: 2014-12-18
Packaged: 2018-03-01 23:45:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2792054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/m4jor3tt3/pseuds/m4jor3tt3
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>my attempt at a crossover fic bc I rewatched firefly and got rly into it (oops)......... based on the eighth episode of the series Firefly, "Out of Gas."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

No one could’ve predicted this. After so many endeavors with no engine trouble, no one could have seen this coming. Now, with the mechanic comatose, no way for the crew’s doctor to patch her up, and the oxygen supply slowly running out, things seemed rather bleak, to say the least. 

*

“A real beauty, ain’t she? Yes, sir, a very smart purchase, this vessel. You treat this boat proper, and she’ll be with you the rest of your life.” 

Sergeant Joaquin Mondragon was speechless when he found his boat. A transport ship, Firefly-class, compact but sturdy. She could move virtually any amount of cargo, and had a few bunks fit for a large crew. She had no weapons, but she was devil quick by the looks of her. 

“You paid money for this? On purpose?” 

Those had been Corporal Maria Posada’s words when Joaquin introduced the boat to her. “What’s that supposed to mean?” Joaquin asked, walking up into the cargo loading bay and urging Maria to follow. “She ain’t much, but she’s something.” Maria arched an eyebrow at that, snorting as she glanced around. “She’s _something_ alright.” 

“With some tune-ups, she can be up and running in no time,” Joaquin argued, rolling his eyes as Maria placed her hands on her hips. “And you expect me to do those tune-ups?” 

“You fixed up all the busted boats in the war! Having engine trouble? Go see the corporal. Gunship’s making funny noises? Take it to mechanic Maria. I distinctly remember you working on mine _a lot_.”

“That’s because you’re a terrible pilot,” Maria said with a laugh, shaking her head. “Even if I can fix this piece of crap, how do you expect to fly it? I can’t imagine it’s got autopilot.” 

“The main controls don’t have an auto setting, but the shuttles do- besides, I was a pilot once. Sure, I’m a little rusty, probably-”

“Oh, so that’s what you’re calling it?” 

Joaquin smirked, nudging Maria with his elbow. “I’m telling you, Maria. She may not win any beauty contests, but she’ll be with you ‘till you die.” 

“Yeah, ‘cause she’s a deathtrap.” 

*

“Why are we stopped, sir?” 

“If I knew, I’d tell you, Maria,” Joaquin said, fussing with the many dials that littered the dashboard. The lights that had illuminated the ship’s many compartments and bridges were all darkened, and Joaquin had forbidden Maria from setting foot in the engine room until he could confidently say that it was user error that had stalled _La Muerte_ and not something worse. 

“The lab doors are locked,” another voice sounded after a beat. Maria looked over her shoulder and saw their small crew’s doctor and her husband, Manolo Sanchez, step into the cockpit. “Can you get them open, Captain?” 

“I can’t get a light switch to work, let alone unlock a door,” Joaquin snapped, flipping switches uselessly and carding his hands through his hair. He sighed heavily, closing his good eye and shaking his head. “I’m sending out a crybaby,” he muttered, fumbling about the dashboard before finding what he was searching for. “A… crybaby…?” Manolo asked slowly, looking from Joaquin to Maria. “It’s a little device that sounds like a distress signal when it’s activated,” Maria explained gently, placing her hands on her hips. Joaquin groaned, his head falling back as he covered his face. “What is it?” Maria asked, leaning over the dash. 

“There’s no way for this stupid thing to reach another boat- we’re in the middle of nowhere. It’s just going to float as aimlessly as we are.” 

“Then make it go farther,” Maria pressed, straightening her back as Manolo put an arm around her shoulders. Joaquin got to his feet with a dry, angry laugh. “Sure, I’ll make it go further, Maria, I’ll make it go further with the fuel we don’t have.” 

Maria’s brow furrowed angrily, then she shook Manolo’s arm off her shoulders. “I’m checking on my engine.” She just about snarled, turning on her heel and stomping out of the cockpit. “Don’t you dare, corporal!” Joaquin shouted past Manolo, towards the mechanic storming away. “You are disobeying a direct order!” 

“That’s what I’m best at, isn’t it?” Maria shouted back, not bothering to look over her shoulder as she climbed up the ladder towards the engine room. Joaquin looked back at Manolo, gesturing to the ladder. “Control your wife,” he muttered, brushing past him, purposely bumping his shoulder as he returned to the dash. 

*

“I’m fine, Maria, honestly- there’s nothing to worry about.” 

“Sir, you only have one eye.” 

When a gunsmith told Joaquin he needed a delivery made, Joaquin agreed once he saw the payment he was to get once the delivery was made. A dozen crates were loaded onto _La Muerte_ , Joaquin was told they were filled with supplies for another weapon smith off planet. Then Maria pried one open, revealing not hunks of metals and spare tools, but packages of Alliance-grade drugs. _La Muerte_ was being used to transport drugs for an up-and-coming drug cartel. “What do you suggest we do, captain?” Maria asked, arms folded across her chest. Joaquin, who was prone to act impulsively, decided that they could pull a few of the bottles of pills and vials of drugs and sell them themselves, meaning they could get paid for delivering the crates, and then make a little extra on another planet. However, their clients were smarter than Joaquin thought originally, and they noticed that some of their product was missing, and a firefight ensued. When the dust settled, the clients took their packages (including what was missing) as well as what would’ve been Joaquin’s payment. Now, he was trying to fly _La Muerte_ with a stained bandage wrapped around his head and his vision limited to one eye. 

“Land this ship now, captain,” Maria insisted, clamping a hand down onto Joaquin’s shoulder. “I don’t want to die in the wreckage of a crashed boat because you were too stubborn to see a doctor.” 

“Doctors cost money, corporal. Something we are lacking in severely, in case you weren’t there about two hours ago. And who are you to give me orders? Last I checked you were a mechanic and I was the captain.” 

“Well, I’m honorary captain when you’re acting like a complete jackass,” Maria said, pulling her hand back. “Now land this ship!” 

“We aren’t going to crash, you’re completely overreact-”

Before Joaquin could finish his thought, Maria had batted his hands away from the controls and took them into her own hands, turning the ship down into a nosedive toward the closest planet. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Joaquin yelled, grasping at Maria’s wrists and trying to pull her hands away. Once she stepped back and gave control back to Joaquin, they were already in the planet’s atmosphere, leaving Joaquin no choice but to land safely. “You could’ve killed us!” Joaquin barked, getting to his feet. However, he rose too quickly and the pain in his eye caused him to grumble angrily and stumble. Maria reached up, winding an arm around Joaquin’s back and smirking triumphantly. “You would’ve killed us first,” she said, shrugging. Joaquin rolled his good eye, sneering as he attempted to stand up straight, finding himself requiring Maria more than he’d assumed. “Well, we landed on some rock. How do we even know if it’s inhabited?” Joaquin asked begrudgingly, following Maria out of the cockpit. “I saw it on the radar,” Maria countered, smiling up at the captain. “There’s a little town nearby. Even if there isn’t a doctor, there’ll be someone who’ll try to help us.” 

“What makes you think that?” 

“No one would turn away someone with one eye who’s slowly bleeding out.” 

*

“Any luck, Sanchez?” Joaquin called up the ladder, having stepped away from the dash after figuring it was pointless to wait for something that wouldn’t happen. He heard Manolo sigh, then walk back to the ladder. “She refused to let me in,” he explained beginning to make his way down the ladder. “Said it was too dangerous.” 

Joaquin sighed, rolling his eye and pushing Manolo out of the way to shout up the ladder again. “Corporal, what’s going on up there?” 

There was a brief metallic clang, then a small wince. “Everything is under control, captain!” Maria called back, voice muffled slightly. 

“Sure doesn’t sound like it,” Joaquin shouted, rubbing at his face. “Sanchez, go back to the cockpit and see if anyone’s picked up our signal yet.” 

“Wait, how do-”

“Just see if the comms screen is flashing or something, you’ll see it.” 

Manolo stood there for a moment then nodded quickly, turning on his heel and heading across the bridge of the cockpit. Joaquin shook his head and sighed, then carefully made his way up the ladder to go to the engine room, but found the hatch stuck in place. “Posada, open this up right now!” He barked, banging his fist on the small door. 

“I don’t need any help!” Maria’s voice called back, her shout followed by a sharp cough. 

“I didn’t ask if you needed-”

The hatch grew extremely hot almost instantaneously, and there was a deafening explosion that caused the captain to collapse backwards off the ladder and onto the cool metal floor. There was a sharp ringing in his ears as he groaned in pain, but through the ringing he heard the hatch pop open and a pair of hurrying footsteps rushing toward him. 

*

“I’ve got a bad feeling about this.” 

“You’ve got a bad feeling about everything, sir.” 

When they had landed on the small rock of a planet, Joaquin had secretly been hoping they wouldn’t find help. Sure, his eye (or lack thereof) hurt like hell and he most likely had numerous other injuries he couldn’t bother himself with, but he also knew that because of the botched job they were also out of money to pay for this doctor’s visit. A doctor on an Alliance planet would most likely bleed them dry, and this planet was surely to be loads cheaper, but there was still a nagging feeling in Joaquin’s gut that told him something was going to go wrong. 

A woman pointed them toward what she called the hospital, but when Joaquin and Maria reached it, they thought they were at the wrong place. It was a house, or the remains of one, that was just about two stories. The brick was a dark dusty red, pieces of stone chipped in places, many of the windows were open, or missing glass entirely, and the front door hung loosely on its hinges. The only thing that made it apparent that the building served as a hospital was the hand-painted sign beside the front door, which read “Dr. Carlos and Carmen Sanchez,” as well as a faded red cross inside a once-white circle Joaquin grumbled softly about how shabby the place looked, Maria slapped his arm then carefully led him inside. 

The waiting room was mostly empty. There was an older man sitting in a corner, running his thumbs over the shaft of a wooden cane propped up against his chair; there was a woman holding as sleeping child against her chest while two played down by her feet; a heavy-set man with a thick mustache sat beside a much shorter man holding a guitar and plucked at the strings absentmindedly. Maria slowly led Joaquin to an empty seat, easing him down into the chair carefully. “How is it?” She asked softly, not wanting to break the silence of the room. Joaquin scoffed derisively, rolling his good- or rather, remaining- eye. “You really want to ask me that?” Maria’s nose wrinkled at the comment, one eyebrow lifting slightly. “Yes, I really want to ask you that, _captain_ ,” she sneered, an unamused look crossing her face. Joaquin grimaced then sighed, shrugging. “Hurts like mad.” 

“Maybe next time you won’t try and pull a stunt like that in order to con money out of trigger happy drug dealers.” 

“Please, corporal, keep talking, I think it’s helping the pain.” 

A door creaked open, and a rich laugh filled the room. All eyes toward upward towards the source of the sound. 

It was a young man, not much older than Maria or Joaquin presumably. He had a stethoscope draped around his neck, and he was dressed fairly nicely compared to the others in the room- a burgundy dress shirt with top few buttons undone, a loose pair of dark pants hung low on his hips, a pair of work brown shoes on his feet. He had dark curly hair that was pulled to the back of his head in a ponytail, and warm brown eyes shaded by thick eyelashes. He was speaking softly in what sounded like Spanish to a very pregnant woman he’d left the examination room with, one hand on her back as she grinned and placed her hands on her stomach. “ _Muchas gracias_ ,” she breathed, lifting one hand to take the man’s, wrapping her small fingers around his much larger ones. He smiled fondly, squeezing his her hand before patting her back carefully. “You come and see me whenever you need, Senora Valdez.” He responded- his voice was gentle and smooth, like warm honey. The woman’s smile broadened and she looked over to the old man with the cane, who carefully stood and returned the smile. Joaquin made a face, leaning over to whisper to Maria, “He better not be the only guy on staff.” Maria blindly smacked at Joaquin’s shoulder, her eyes wide as she watched the doctor approach the woman with the toddler. Joaquin arched an eyebrow, glancing at the man before groaning quietly. “You’re kidding,” he said, unamused. 

“He can’t be a doctor, he’s too…” Maria mused, resting her chin in her hand. 

“Young? Cocky? His hair’s too long?” 

“Oh, his hair is _so_ long- I bet it’s soft.” 

The woman with the toddler nodded towards Joaquin and Maria; the doctor followed her eyes then gasped. “ _Dios mio_ ,” he said, quickly walking over to them. Maria’s cheeks flushed; Joaquin rolled his eye. “I am so sorry to have kept you waiting-”

“Oh, it’s no trouble,” Maria sighed, smiling up at the man and batting her eyes.

“Yeah, no trouble. Just half blind and bleeding.” Joaquin agreed sarcastically, flashing an obviously annoyed grin partially towards the doctor, mostly towards Maria. 

*

“Joaquin? Joaquin, can you hear me?” 

Joaquin grumbled softly, blinking his eye slowly. His vision slowly came into focus, and he was able to make out Manolo hovering over him, his face red from running and a nervous look in his eyes. “Yeah, I can hear you,” Joaquin mumbled, reaching up and taking Manolo’s extended hand to get to his feet. “What happened? Where’s Maria?” Manolo asked breathlessly; Joaquin rubbed at his face with one hand and silenced Manolo’s hysterics with the other. “Stay here,” he ordered, shaking out his shoulders before stepping back up to the ladder. “Can’t have the only other man in my crew getting himself killed, too.” 

“ _Too?!_ ”

Ignoring Manolo’s panicking cries, Joaquin slowly made his way up the ladder. The flames had subdued partially, but red hot fire surrounded the engine. The walls were scorched from the blast, the air was thick with smoke and heat. “Posada?” Joaquin shouted, coughing as exhaust filled his lungs He squinted, slowly able to make out a vaguely human shape sprawled out on the floor. “Maria!” He choked out, slowly walking towards the body, worried that nay sudden reactions might trigger another blast. Once he was close enough, he could clearly see the singed, mangled body of Maria Posada: her face was oddly calm, though it was smudged with ash from the explosion, her eyes were closed and her lips were slightly parted as if she were sleeping. Joaquin swallowed hard, shutting his eye for a moment before kneeling down beside her. He gently rested his fingertips against her wrist, sighing with relief when he felt her pulse beat slowly beneath his touch. He slid his arms beneath her body and lifted her up to throw her over his shoulder. 

When he got out of the engine room and halfway down the ladder, he spotted Manolo sitting on the floor, his knees pulled up to his chest and his hands fisted in his hair. He had his eyes closed, and he was muttering something Joaquin couldn’t quite make out. “Didn’t take you for the praying type, Sanchez,” he said as he stepped off the ladder, moving to pull Maria off his shoulder and rest her carefully in his arms. Manolo looked up at the sound of Joaquin’s voice, his eyes red and swollen. “H-How is she?” He asked, his voice trembling as he got to his feet. 

“Well, I ain’t no doctor, but I could find her pulse, so she could be worse,” Joaquin said flatly, watching as Manolo ran his shaking fingers over Maria’s dark hair. He was silent for a moment; Joaquin lifted an eyebrow curiously. “What is it?” 

Manolo blinked and cleared his throat. “ _Lo siento_ , um…” He sniffed, shaking his head. “She... it doesn’t look like there are any external severe burns, but... there could be internal injury.” 

“What do you mean could be?” 

“Well, there’s no way to tell without my scanner and the rest of my equipment-”

“Which you can’t get to because the engine is dead and the med bay is locked off.” 

“The engine is dead?” 

Joaquin looked up from Maria to Manolo, who met his eyes with fear and confusion. Joaquin sighed, nodding gravely as he adjusted Maria in his arms. “Yeah. Something wasn’t working right, which is why she stopped moving. When Maria went up to fix it… well, it just didn’t want to be fixed, I suppose.” 

“So what does that mean?” 

“Means that someone better pick up our distress signal before we run out of air.” 

“Run out of-”

“Engine being dead means life support is dead, too. All the oxygen we had was what got pumped in when we left that rock a few hours ago, and my guess is that fire up there isn’t doing us much good. Here, take her-”

Manolo reached out and took Maria into his own arms- the moment he felt her weight his face fell, and his eyes began to water again. “W-what-” He stopped when his voice cracked, then cleared his throat. “What are you going to do?” 

Joaquin shrugged slightly, then began to make his way back to the cockpit. “I’m going to do my damn best.” 

*

“What’s-a matter, doc? Never stitched up an- _ah_ , careful!” 

The doctor, who Joaquin and Maria assumed to be the “Carlos Sanchez” from the sign out front, had made Joaquin his top priority once he saw his condition- mainly the dark, bloodied sheet of cloth that Joaquin had been using to cover up his injury. To Joaquin’s surprise, the young doctor’s equipment was fairly modern0 the examination room was stark white and dull silver, the floor was spotless, the tools were sterilized. If they hadn’t just been out in the dusty, beige waiting room, Joaquin would’ve thought they were in some Alliance hospital. The doctor had cleaned away the blood and dead flesh from Joaquin’s wound with ease, and was now prodding at the empty socket with gauze. “I’m not stitching you up, sir- the wound should heal on its own. It’ll take a long, painful while, but it’ll heal.” 

“Sounds like a boatload of fun,” Joaquin said, smirking before wincing again at the gauze.

“Funny, I’m usually the one who calls him sir,” Maria interjected from her spot against the wall, her arms folded over chest. She’d insisted to be with Joaquin while he was getting patched up, but Joaquin knew she really just wanted to ogle the young doctor. At her comment, the man chuckled lightly. “My apologies. Are you two-?”

Joaquin barked out a laugh. “God, no.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Maria snapped, her hands going to her hips. “Am I not pretty enough for you or something? Or do you only fancy the companion type?” 

“You, of all people, know I ain’t ever been with a companion- whatever, it’s got nothing to do with your lucks. I could never be with you in such a fashion.” 

“And why’s that?” 

“Because I’d never be romantically involved with a woman who introduced herself to me by shooting at me?” 

“Er, if I may?” The doctor softly interrupted. “I was… actually going to ask if you were brother and sister but… I’m guessing you aren’t that either?” 

Joaquin blushed softly; Maria snorted then cleared her throat. “No, we ain’t brother and sister.” 

“We fought in the war for independence together,” Joaquin explained. 

“Oh? On the… independence side, I’m assuming?” 

“You’d assume right.” 

“I used to live on an Alliance planet, actually.” 

“Really, now? Maria asked, a sly smile coming to her face. “So, you’re used to things being shiny and new?” 

“Not necessarily,” the doctor said, smiling and shrugging. “My parents were both doctors, but people on Alliance planets aren’t often sick or injured, so my mother decided that she and my father take their skills to where there needed.” 

“How thoughtful- couple of Alliance folks gracing those less fortunate with their presence.” Joaquin muttered, rolling his eye. Maria made an annoyed noise, then giggled awkwardly. “Sorry, doc- he ain’t usually this ornery.” 

“Yeah, my less than desirable behavior must have something do with the fact that I lost an eye a few hours ago-”

“So, where’s your wife?” Maria interrupted, laughing again. The doctor arched an eyebrow, glancing up from Joaquin to Maria. “I’m not married.” Maria tilted her head. “Then… who’s Carmen?” The doctor wore a confused expression for a moment, then chuckled, shaking his head before looking back to his work. “Oh, _lo siento_ \- Carmen was my mother The sign out front is many years outdated, it was made by my parents when they first came here. Carlos was my father.” 

“Oh,” Maria said, raising an eyebrow briefly before smiling again. “So, who does that make you?” 

“Manolo,” he said. A slight smile crossed his features. “What about you?” Maria bit her lip, taking half a step away from the wall and closer to the doctor. “I’m Maria, it’s a pleasure.” 

“I would offer to give you two some privacy, but in case you haven’t noticed, a man’s hand is inside a hole in my head that I’d much prefer not be there- the hole and the man.” Joaquin said after a beat; Manolo blushed scarlet and quickly pulled his hand away, then busied himself with crossing the room to pull clean bandages from an open drawer. Joaquin sat up slowly- his torso was littered with white medical tape and cotton plugging up bullet holes. Maria gave him a funny look once they made eye contact, a sort of look that said, “I may or may not fancy this guy, would you please stop acting like such an ass?” 

“You said that Carlos and Carmen _were_ your parents,” Maria said once Manolo had walked back up to Joaquin. “What happened to them?” 

“Well, my mother was killed when Alliance officers came and raided one of the hospitals she and my father had set up on an outlying planet,” Manolo began to explain, carefully pressing a pad of gauze to Joaquin’s injury before beginning to secure it with gauze. “She was accused of stealing from an Alliance hospital you see- the officers took most of the supplies she and my father had, then burned down the hospital. My mother was still in the building when it started to come down- she was trying to get all her patients out.” He let out a sad laugh. “They hadn’t stolen any equipment. They took things that were broken, things anyone on an Alliance planet would toss out without a second thought, and fixed them.” 

“Guess they did too good of a job,” Joaquin mumbled; Maria swatted his shoulder and shushed him, then looked back up at Manolo. “And your father?” 

“He caught something a few years ago. Oh, the irony, right? I was still training in med school at the time, otherwise I… probably could have helped him.” 

“Yes, it’s all very sad and touching- how’s my eye looking?” 

“ _Joaquin_!”

His comment was met by another sharp smack to the shoulder. Manolo chuckled, shaking his head. “No, it’s alright. I forgot where I was for a minute- you’re very easy to talk to,” he looked over at Maria, smiling slightly, then looked back to Joaquin. “Well, like I said, it should heal up on its own. Change the bandage every day for the first few weeks, or as necessary…”

“How’s your pay here?” Maria suddenly asked as Manolo handed Joaquin his bloodstained shirt. Joaquin lifted an eyebrow questioningly; Manolo sported a similar expression. “Er… really, I give anyone who needs treatment, treatment. Sometimes people give donations, and I also play with a band for small tips occasionally, so… I get on well.” Manolo responded, obviously confused. 

“What if you could get on better?” 

“Posada, what are you doing?” Joaquin hissed, pulling his shirt carefully over his shoulders. A sly grin played on Maria’s face, and she shrugged. “Captain here pays me pretty well. And considering his current state… we could always use the extra medical help.” 

Manolo blushed softly. “What do you…?”

“Man’s got a job, Posada- he doesn’t want to pack up and leave on _La Muerte_ , and I can take care of myself.” Joaquin interjected, buttoning up his shirt. Maria gave him a look, placing one hand on her hip. “Have you seen yourself lately?” She said, nodding toward the bandage wrapped around his head. She looked back to Manolo. “Surely someone could take your place here. And we could always bring you back if necessary.” 

“Posada, shut your damn mouth-”

“Our ship is big and lonely with just a pilot and a mechanic, but we travel all over. How would you like to see the stars?” 

“My most sincere apologies, doc,” Joaquin quickly said, getting to his feet and grabbing Maria tightly by the arm. “She’s not used to speaking to people for such a long time without having a gun put to her head, and she’s obviously out of line. We’ll be on our way now.” Manolo stammered briefly as Joaquin muttered a thank you, then tugged Maria behind him towards the door. 

“I can’t believe you,” Joaquin groaned, rolling his eye as they left the building. “I thought you were better than that! Honestly, you see one guy and you’re treating him like some sort of Greek god- like the sun shines out his ass or something, then you’re practically begging him to come aboard my boat just because you-”

“Alright, I get it!” Maria sighed, exasperated. “Yes, I thought he was… cute, but think about it- having a doctor on board would be so useful, considering all the trouble you get yourself into-”

“I don’t get myself into _that_ much trouble, this is the worst injury I’ve ever gotten, and I’m alive, aren’t I?” 

Maria rolled her eyes. “I probably could’ve gotten him to say yes.” She muttered, kicking at the dusty ground. 

“Hey, wait up!” 

Joaquin glanced over his shoulder, letting out a long sigh when he saw Manolo walking briskly towards them, a large bag slung over his shoulder and a… was that a guitar case? Joaquin looked down at Maria, who was grinning broadly. Manolo was panting softly from running, but smiling. “So,” he said once he caught his breath. “About that offer?” 

*

“How’s she doing?” Joaquin asked quietly. After deciding it was pointless to sit and watch the comms for a response to their signal, he left the cockpit and headed to Manolo and Maria’s shuttle, after opening the back hatch to let out the flames from the explosion. Manolo still couldn’t get into the med bay, but he’d said there were spare supplies in his bunk that he might be able to use to maybe not save Maria, but keep her alive for a little while longer. 

“She’s stable,” Manolo said, shrugging as he gently ran his fingers through Maria’s now loose hair. She was lying down on the spare bed, her chest just barely rising and falling, the soot was cleared from her skin, and Manolo had changed her burned clothes. Joaquin sighed softly, leaning against the wall and rubbing at his face. “Okay, here’s the way I see it,” he began. “There’s… only enough oxygen left on the boat for a few hours at best. But there is an autopilot function on the controls in the shuttles.” 

“What are you saying? That we abandon _La Muerte_?”

“No, I’m saying you let your shuttle take you and Maria somewhere you can get help. At least for her.” 

“Well, what about you? You aren’t suggesting that we leave you behind.” 

“I ain’t suggesting, I’m telling.” 

Joaquin met Manolo’s eyes gravely; Manolo stood up from Maria’s bedside, shaking his head. “Joaquin, this isn’t the ancient sea, you don’t have to go down with your ship-”

“The idea is someone will see your shuttle, Sanchez. If anyone does, then chances are we can save Maria and _La Muerte_ \- Maria, at the least.” 

“You don’t have to-” Manolo stopped himself, then swallowed hard. “You don’t have to die alone.” 

And for what might have been the first time, Joaquin smiled at Manolo. Albeit, the expression that tugged at his lips was a sad one, it was a smile nonetheless. He shrugged. “Everyone does.” He swallowed, running his hand through his hair before shaking his head. “Who said she was going down?” He said after a beat, his expression strong and his tone cold. But Manolo only smiled, rubbing his eye with the heel of his hand. He bit his lip briefly, then looked over his shoulder at Maria. “When you were calling her name in the engine room,” he began softly. “You… you called her Posada.” 

Joaquin tilted his head. “Yeah?” 

“She’s a Sanchez.” 

Joaquin was quiet a moment then laughed dryly, clapping a hand on Manolo’s shoulder. “Manolo, I don’t care who she’s married to- she’s a Posada and always will be.” Manolo looked up at Joaquin, eyes wide and a soft blush spreading over his cheeks. “You called me Manolo,” he said, a teasing smile coming to his face. 

“Yeah? That’s your name, ain’t it?” 

“Yes, but you’ve always called me Sanchez, or doc.” 

Joaquin looked at Manolo for a moment, then cleared his throat, pulling his hand back. “Th-there’s a… comm system on the shuttle. We can keep in contact through that, and you can send the shuttle back if someone finds you. Get ready for departure.” He gave Manolo a curt nod, then began to make his way towards the ladder out of the shuttle. “Take care of her, alright?” Joaquin said over his shoulder as he pushed up the hatch. 

“Will do, captain.” 

*

“Come on, now, Joaquin, won’t you smile for me?” 

“You disobeyed a direct order-”

“God, would you quit it with all the ‘orders’? It’s a wedding- be happy for me.” 

Manolo had only traveled on _La Muerte_ for ten months when he and Maria decided to get married. When Maria told Joaquin this, he nearly threw Manolo out the cargo bay doors. He’d given her a speech about how on-ship romance splits loyalties, how they only cause trouble; Maria had just laughed it off, saying she’d “never felt this way about a fella,” and how if Joaquin really cared about her, he’d let her have this. Now they were on some preacher planet, Maria dressed up in her cleanest work clothes (they had no way of getting her fancy whites for the occasion), with her hair done up by some little girls they met running about, and a ring on her finger. It was a simple gold band, couldn’t have anything too intricate, what with her being a mechanic, and it also happened to be something the preacher who wed her and Manolo had lying around. Manolo was off playing his guitar for a group of kids, and Joaquin was trying to get drunk off ceremonial wine (surprisingly, there are no pubs in a town mainly inhabited by church folk.) 

“You haven’t known this guy very long, he can’t fire a gun, and all he’s good for is mending bruises. I don’t trust him.” 

“You don’t trust anyone.” 

“I trusted _you_ \- then you went off and married him.” 

“You could’ve said no!” 

“In what verse could I have said no to Maria Posada?” 

“Maria Sanchez now, sir.” 

Joaquin scoffed, swallowing the last of his wine before picking up the bottle from the center of the table. “I don’t give a good God damn who you’re married to- you’re a Posada.” 

“I feel like that’s something that would be up to me and not you, sergeant.” 

“War for independence was years ago and you still call me sergeant- why would I stop calling you your name just because you shacked up with some schmuck?” 

Maria sighed and shook her head. “Will you ever be happy for me? I would be happy for you.” 

Joaquin looked up at her, one eyebrow arched, the neck of the wine bottle in his hand. He pursed his lips, then took a swig from the bottle and shook his head. “Nah, don’t believe I will.” 

“You’re lucky I’m in such a good mood or else I’d slap you.” 

“Wouldn’t be the first time- and you don’t hit very hard.” 

*

By the time Manolo and Maria’s shuttle had taken off, _La Muerte_ ’s oxygen was down at least forty percent- much of it had been consumed by the fire from the explosion, and then some was sucked out the door when Joaquin was trying to get the fire out of the ship. Joaquin had sealed everything up tight once the shuttle had taken off, then found a spare blanket in the cockpit to wrap around his shoulders as the cold from lack of oxygen set it. He took a seat in his pilot’s chair and switched on the comms to the shuttle. “This is Captain Mondragon of _La Muerte_ calling one of her departed shuttles,” he rattled off, taking short breaths to conserve air. The comms buzzed briefly with static, then a brief sound came from the speaker. “Joaquin?” The sound crackled, but it was undoubtedly Manolo’s voice. “How are you holding up?” 

“’s cold,” Joaquin said briefly, smiling to himself. “How’s Maria?” 

“Breathing.” 

And then they were quiet, the only sound being Manolo’s quiet breathing. 

“Hey, doc,” Joaquin said after a beat, closing his eyes. “Can I ask you something?” 

“Of course.” 

“How’s it going to happen?” 

“How’s what-”

“How’m I going to die?” 

Manolo was quiet. 

“I mean, I know how it’s gonna happen- she’s gonna run out of air in maybe… two and a half, three hours? I’ll feel it for a moment, then I… won’t feel nothing at all. But how’s it going to happen, medically speaking?” 

Again, Manolo was silent, then spoke up after a moment. “Why would you want to know that? It’s pretty grim, don’t you think?” 

“I suppose,” Joaquin said, shrugging. “But listening to you talk would be a nice distraction.” 

The comms were quiet, then Manolo cleared his throat. “It’s called anoxic anoxia, which is when the body is getting inadequate oxygen to be breathed in. Once there’s… no air on the ship, that’s what you’ll-” he choked on his words, took a deep breath, then continued. “That’s what you’ll suffer from. Then, once there’s nothing to breathe, your brain starts to feel the effects- that’s cerebral hypoxia. That’s when you become unresponsive, you may or may not slip into a coma. Normally, depending on how long the brain was deprived of oxygen, a coma can be completely reversible. However, in your case…” Another pause. “The brain can survive for up to six minutes after the heart stops. It’s after those six minutes, the brain begins to die. Given you’ll be… asleep, you won’t feel a thing. 

“After the brain dies, the ship will be at the mercy of space. The human body is seventy percent water, but without the atmospheric pressure of earth, the water will expand, making the body swell to twice its normal size. Any exposed skin will be burned, due to the fact sunlight isn’t filtered through an ozone layer in deep space. Any oxygen that may be left in your bloodstream will dissolve, turning the body blue. Any fluids- eyes, mouth, nose, whatever- will freeze over due to the fact there’s no humidity in space. But… you would already be gone while all this happens so…”

“At least I’d be spared some embarrassment,” Joaquin joked lightly. Manolo didn’t laugh, only swallowed what must have been a lump in his throat. It was silent again- Joaquin tried to keep his breathing to a minimum- not that it would do him much good. 

“How did you meet Maria?” Manolo asked, breaking the short lived silence. Joaquin blinked a few times. “She hasn’t told you?” 

“Well, she’s said that you met in the war, but she’s never really elaborated on your meeting.” 

Joaquin blinked again, letting out a short sigh, then quickly stopped himself to conserve his air supply. 

“Well, she ain’t wrong- we met in the war. She moved up quick and high in the ranks, but she was really truly gifted as a mechanic. That’s part of how we met- my ship at time was used for shooting up enemy trenches, always getting banged up in the sky, and she got grounded for repairs, and… Maria was the on-call mechanic…”

*

Joaquin was angry, to say the least. His ship was on the ground, a place where no ship should be, with a mechanic working on the engine instead of a pilot in the cockpit. He knew how to fight on the ground, every good soldier was versatile, but everything felt natural and right when he was in the air. He was stuck on the ground until his ship was repaired- and in the middle of a war, Joaquin would rather be in an Alliance prison cell than on the dusty ground with a gun in his hand. A young soldier in his brigade watched his back, fingers trembling on the trigger of his rifle, as he made his way to the trench his ship was being repaired in. “How’s she-”

“Stay back!” 

Suddenly, a bullet flew by Joaquin’s arm. Luckily, he’d been able to jump out of the way, the bullet penetrating the wall of the trench instead of Joaquin’s forearm. “Hey, hey- trigger happy much? We’re all on the same side!” He shouted, one hand clutching his chest as he caught his breath. 

The source of the bullet was a small pistol in the hand of a mechanic, who rose to their feet with a sigh. “Sorry,” they said, wiping grease from their face. “When you’re a pretty girl in the middle of the war, you can never be too careful.” 

Joaquin blinked. He’d seen women mechanics, women soldiers, women everything, it wasn’t an uncommon occurrence, but he wasn’t expecting this particular mechanic to be so… pretty. 

She was small, the top of her head must’ve only come to just beneath Joaquin’s chin. Her hair was long and dark, pulled back away from her face in a ponytail. Her waist was small, as were her hands and feet, but her hips were wider set. Her face was round, with a small nose, plump lips, and big brown eyes shaded by thick eyelashes. She wore a smirk, and she wore it well. 

Joaquin swallowed, trying to remember what he was going to say. The mechanic lifted a thick eyebrow, then rolled her eyes. “Cat got your tongue, sergeant?” 

“H-how-”

“Says it on your jacket, sir.” 

Joaquin blinked, looking down at the name stitched into his coat, then awkwardly cleared his throat. “I just wanted to know when she’d be flight ready.” 

The mechanic hummed, placing a hand on her hip thoughtfully. “Tomorrow, maybe. If I work through the night.” 

“So two days?” 

“You sayin’ I can’t work through the night?” 

“What? N-no, not at all. I just… I mean…”

“Only joking, sir.” 

Joaquin looked up at the mechanic, then smirked slightly. “She’s my ship- I could help you out.” 

She scoffed. “I highly doubt it.” 

“What makes you say that?”

“She’s in here because of you!” She laughed, and it sounded like music. “You may be her pilot, but I’ve been her mechanic before. I probably know her even better than you do.”

*

“After that, she got assigned to my brigade,” Joaquin finished, sighing sadly. “We’ve been working together ever since.” 

“I can’t believe she shot at you,” Manolo breathed, a soft laugh escaping him.

“You can’t?” Joaquin laughed, shrugging his shoulders. “I can’t believe she only shot at me _once_.”

Their laughter, soft and gentle, faded out after a moment, replaced by Manolo’s quiet breathing once again. Joaquin swallowed, tipping his head back and tightening the blanket around his shoulders. “You know, I told her she shouldn’t marry you.”

“Really?” Manolo asked- his tone wasn’t angry or accusative, though, it was light and playful.

Joaquin hummed. “Yeah. I told her it was because, uh… in-crew relationships complicate things, when, um…”

“When what?”

“When… when I was really just upset that it wasn’t me. Marryin’ her, that is.”

Manolo fell silent. Joaquin imagined that was hard to hear- it was hard enough for him to say. He’d known since the minute he saw Maria that he loved her, no matter how much he’d try to deny it. He’d just figured out early on that she wasn’t the romantic type- neither was he, for that matter. When she took a liking to Manolo, it broke Joaquin’s heart, to say the least. He thought he could survive loving her with no chance of the feelings being reciprocated, but when another man waltzed in and stole her heart… that was almost too much to handle. He knew he couldn’t make a big to-do out of the situation, though- he valued Maria’s friendship far too much to lose her over… petty romantic feelings.

After what felt like an eternity, Manolo finally broke the silence. “Do you love her?”

“I believe I do, yes,” Joaquin said, nodding briefly, despite the fact Manolo couldn’t see him.

“And you were fine with her marrying someone else?”

“I wouldn’t say I was fine with it, but there was no way I could stop it,” Joaquin sighed softly, sinking slightly in the chair. “You’re good to her, though. Better than I would be, anyway.”

“Don’t say that.”

Joaquin’s eyes opened briefly at the sound of Manolo’s voice; he wet his lips and swallowed. “I don’t hate you, you know,” he said softly, looking down at his lap as he pulled the blanket close to him. “I know it… seems like I do sometimes.”

“I know you don’t hate me.”

“You do?”

“You don’t seem like the hating type.”

A silence fell over them; Joaquin sighed softly, tipping his head back. “If we make it out of this, don’t tell Maria anything I said,” he said after a long moment. “I’ve got a reputation to uphold.”

He heard Manolo laugh softly. “Will do.”

Joaquin closed his eyes, sinking into the chair a little further. “I’m real tired, Manolo,” he yawned, tilting his head slightly.

“Then go to sleep.”

“I can’t sleep- I know what sleep means. Keep me awake.”

“I can play for you?”

“No, your guitar always puts me to sleep- it’s too pretty.”

Manolo laughed quietly. “I didn’t think you liked my music.”

“Shut it- just… tell me about something crazy that happened when you were in medical school or some kinda medical horror story.”

Manolo sighed softly, thinking for a moment. “One time, my father had me help him out with a fairly basic surgery- something simple for his son who was fresh out of school…”

Somewhere around Manolo’s third story, Joaquin had let out a long breath, shutting his eyes and tipping his head back into the chair, and he was silent. “So, there I am, covered in mud, still holding this huge bag of bandages and antibiotics, when-” Manolo paused for a moment, listening to the comms. “Joaquin?”

No response.

Manolo sniffed softly, letting out a shaky breath.

Then there was nothing but static.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> just a short alternate happier ending thats more accurate to the episode of firefly that this is based on

The first time Joaquin flew a ship was when he was fourteen years old. He loved the feeling of being in complete control of such a big piece of technology, having the life of anyone on board in his hands. The stars and planets raced around him like birds on a spring day. The first time he strapped himself into a space suit was a year later, when head to make a minor external repair after haphazardly flying through an asteroid field, and he almost liked that more than flying.

He was standing on the side of the ship, one cord keeping him connected to his only way home. There was a wrench in his hand, but he probably could’ve fixed the problem with his hands. The visor of his helmet was pushed back, and his head lifted up with wide eyes. He was surrounded by stars and light, his home planet just below him. With just a slight jump, the lack of gravity lifted him off the wall of the ship, leaving him floating but in no danger of drifting away. He lifted one arm, as if to touch a star a million miles away, and found himself smiling. The light of a sun illuminated everything, all free floating objects were made stark and crisp, like they were drawings with heavy, thick lines. It was unlike anything Joaquin had ever experienced. That was how he decided he belonged out here, in the great vast nothing of space, on a good ship with a good crew, exploring the stars…

*

Everything was white. And it seemed as if any sound was absorbed by the stark lack of color. 

“Welcome back, captain.” 

Joaquin blinked, then almost immediately gasped, letting the oxygen fill him, feeling his lungs expand in his chest. He looked around- the room was clean white and dull grey, the floor was clean, and the equipment was sterile. Joaquin turned his head slowly, wetting his dry, cracked lips. Maria was lying down in a cot beside him, her hair tangled and spread around her face, her eyes half lidded. 

“Wha… are we dead?” Joaquin tried to ask, his jaw and tongue feeling numb and heavy. Maria laughed gently, closing her eyes and smiling. “No, not dead. You came pretty damn close, though. Gave us a good scare.” 

“Wh… where’s… Manolo?” 

“He’s here,” Maria said, opening her eyes again. “Well, not in this room- in this building. He went to talk to a nurse.” 

“Where…”

“A hospital. Not Alliance, don’t worry. A transport ship found Manolo’s shuttle about an hour after it took off. They used the flight path to find _La Muerte_ ,” she smiled fondly. “He’ll be so happy to see you awake. He was scared out of his mind. 

Joaquin blinked again, then found himself smiling tiredly. “He was?” 

Maria hummed, nodding. “It’s nice to see my two boys getting along.” She said, laughing softly. Joaquin’s smile widened and he took another deep breath through his nose. “Air tastes good,” he murmured, closing his eyes. Maria laughed again. “I want whatever the doc’s got you on.” 

The door quietly creaked open; Maria looked up and grinned. “There’s my handsome doctor husband,” she breathed, reaching a hand out. Joaquin heard Manolo’s calm laugh, then the man came into view as he took Maria’s hand and sat on the edge of her bed. “And _mi bella esposa_ ,” he said, kissing Maria’s hand before gently running his hand through her hair. “How are we feeling?” 

“Alive,” Joaquin chuckled, closing his eye. Manolo looked up from Maria, staring wide-eyed at Joaquin, who opened his eye again and smirked. “Did you miss me?” 

Manolo let out a sad laugh, standing up from Maria’s side and walking up to Joaquin. “You have no idea.” The two looked at each other in silence for a moment, then Maria laughed quietly. “I’m so glad a near death experience brought you closer together.” 

“Technically, death experience,” Manolo admitted, rubbing his eye and smiling crookedly. “At one point, Joaquin, your heart stopped, what with it not being used to the change in air pressure- you were legally dead for about two minutes.” 

“Damn, and I missed it?” 

Manolo laughed again, shaking his head. “IT’s great to see you awake, but the meds we have you on are very strong and are helping to get your blood oxygen levels back to normal, so it’s best that you just rest.” 

Joaquin hummed thoughtfully, then shook his head. “No, Manolo, I… I don’t want to sleep-”

“You have to, Joaquin,” Maria said gently. “You’ll feel better.” 

“Last time I fell asleep I thought I wasn’t going to wake up,” Joaquin argued, his voice weak. Manolo and Maria exchanged a brief look, then Maria nodded. Manolo smiled softly, then sat down on the edge of Joaquin’s bed. “I can promise that you’ll wake up.” He said, gently resting his hand on top of Joaquin’s. Joaquin glanced down at his hand, then up at Manolo, then over at Maria. “Will… will you be here when I wake up?” He asked, looking between the two of them with tired, hopeful eyes. The cot beside him creaked, and then Maria was resting against Manolo’s shoulder. “We’ll be here,” she said nodding and smiling. 

“We’ll wait for you.” Manolo said, wearing a matching grin. 

Joaquin swallowed, then nodded, allowing his eyes to fall shut. “Hey, I-” He yawned. “I love you guys.” 

He felt Manolo squeeze his hand, then he slowly drifted off to sleep. 


End file.
